Newsletter editor: Martha Brown, e-mail:
martha@zzyx.ucsc.eduVision Statement: The Center for Agroecology &
Sustainable Food System's goal is to research, develop, and advance sustainable
food and agriculture systems which are environmentally sound, economically
viable, socially responsible, nonexploitative, and which serve as a foundation
for future generations. Our interdisciplinary focus addresses the many
interrelated parts of the entire food and agriculture system at local, regional,
national, and international levels. Priorities in our research and education
activities include:

Increasing understanding of the social, economic, political, and ethical
foundations of agricultural sustainability.

Establishing the ecological and agronomic basis for sustainable production
systems.

Demonstrating and facilitating the use of information critical to the
adoption of these systems.

The Center runs the 2-acre Alan Chadwick Garden and the 25-acre UCSC
Farm, both on the UCSC campus. These serve as training grounds for students in
our 6-month Apprenticeship in Ecological Horticulture, as well as outdoor
classrooms and demonstration sites for students and the general public. Faculty
affiliates teach undergraduate and graduate courses in the Agroecology and
Sustainable Agriculture emphasis through the UCSC Environmental Studies Board.
Center researchers do extensive on-farm work with area growers in a variety of
cropping systems to help growers develop and adopt organic farming techniques.